A few days ago I hiked through a forest with friends, bending down often to collect the fiery red and orange leaves strewn on paths and boulders. I remarked to myself, again, that leaves don’t really matter in this annual recollection; it’s the Tree itself that grips me. It always does at this time of year when they begin to go dormant and release their deadening leaves into the cooling wind.Just few years ago during this very same season, my husband and I rode an antique train up a mountain in West Virginia. A swath just a few feet wide had been cut through a vast sea of trees to allow the old tracks to still hold that old train as it made its eight-hour trek to the top, where miners who had worked deep in the mountain in the 1800s had built a town for their families. Periodically a family member would take the long ride down to civilization for necessaries or to find a doctor. The ride down, the ride back up. Two days surrounded by trees.To this day it’s the only sight to see through the windows. No structures, no light, no sky even. Trees stretched upward so high one doubts their top branches really exist. Trees packed together, marching in lock-step to the summit of their mountain. An endless experience for any passenger rocking to and fro with hours more to go.But I was riveted. “Patty, what are you thinking?” he queried. “About the Tree,” I answered as thousands of them sped by my window, a silent witness.The Cross is our reminder today of a saving love so startling that hymnists and poets over centuries have penned the most glorious language to portray it. But the Cross was a terrifying sight, an anathema to even speak of for those on the ground who witnessed its use in ancient times. The Gospels barely mention it; we know His feet were nailed to the pillar and His arms to the crossbeam. Instead they wrote of the week leading up to it: palm branches, poignant gatherings at Lazarus’ house, the Last Supper and Gethsemane, the trial and the screaming “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” of the midnight rabble, the brutal trek of a nearly unrecognizable Man through the streets of Jerusalem. And they wrote of its victory-day afterward: women laden with spices suddenly face-to-face with the Resurrected One, followers on the road out of Jerusalem walking and talking with their Lord unknowingly, the lying collaboration between natural enemies: soldiers, government and religious leaders.In those days everyone knew the inhumanity and the agonies of the Roman cross. Everyone had seen it. Why go into it when expensive scrolls were needed to explain the new fresh Gospel circulating where Paul and Peter and Barnabas and Luke had traveled with their life-changing story of love? But you and I must take a long hard look at the Cross. We don’t see this sort of thing ringing our cities that teem with shops and theaters and walking paths and parks. But the Romans would leave the pillar entrenched in the ground just outside the towns or even at a crossroads, standing mute as a warning to occupied peoples of what would be the fate for the next rebel against their rule. Afterward they’d throw the body into a shallow pit nearby for the carrion to feast on until they reached the stripped-clean skeletons layered underneath.Their bodies were nailed as one would nail a marker or a sign. Huge nails; powerful blows hammered by soldiers deadened to the cries for mercy.But that one particular Tree, that monstrous obscene Cross, was stained with a deep red drained from a God-man willing to be there. The most beautiful of men died impaled because of you and me. Because our sin so long ago had incurred the wrath of God and the greatest mercy of God … so long ago. For us, for you and for me. For the joy of our salvation.Why would I write this now? Why not save this essay for Easter Week?Because fall is the season marked by millions of trees undergoing a remarkable change right before our eyes; many families plan excursions into areas of spectacular fall foliage. Because we decorate our dining tables with vibrant leaves collected from trees shutting down for winter. Because rustling is a sound that awakens and reminds.Because I can’t any more look at trees in this season with a simple enjoyment. Never again will I be able to hike a forest, wrap my fingers around bark for balance, bend down with the impulse to collect, without experiencing the deep mournful regret for sin and an ever-deepening awe and gratitude for our Lord’s bloody rescue.

By: Taylor Abigail

The fall issue of Live with Heart & Soul magazine features three amazing places and events: National Parks (and one traveler’s story about them), a new musical titled Horizons of Gold, and the Creation Museum’s Ark Encounter. This summer, I visited these wonders for myself and can’t wait to see what fall issue of the magazine has to say about them! But here’s a sneak peak into what a blessing these events were to one writer for Live with Heart & Soul.

Ark EncounterThis modern day scale replica of Noah’s ark doesn’t shy away from it’s ancient realities. Upon entry, visitors are blasted with massive creaks of the ship from the simulated voyage, an eerie darkness, and hundreds of squawks, grunts, and hollers from stacked cages. Following this unexpected entrance comes lighter space and walls lined with facts about the flood’s effect on the earth, pre-flood world, techniques of animal care on the ark, and many more answers to lingering questions!As the largest wood-frame building in the world, the ark’s beauty is stunning. Huge log pillars uphold the multilevel structure and the phenomenal curve of the ship’s belly makes a statement. At the end of the ark exhibit, it’s time to peruse the gift shop, visit the restaurant, or head to the mini zoo and animal rides! My cousin and I rode a camel which was definitely a highlight.Live with Heart & Soul magazine loves to support God glorifying endeavors such as the ark. The fall issue features an exclusive interview with Ken Ham that’s filled with even more stunning facts about the ark and the Creation Museum’s journey in recreating it.

Horizons of Gold musicalThe story of Ruth put to the stage. A story of rescue, hope, and strength, Horizons of Gold easily captures the heart. I had the privilege of premiering the lead character, Rose, in high school. When I heard the musical was being performed again just twenty minutes from my house, I had to get Live with Heart & Soul involved!The musical echoes the stylistic choices and artistic genius of Les Miserables. The cutting, realistic characters and powerful music instantly draw the audience in and bring up the tears. The most precious of scenes are mixed with humor and everyday conversations we’ve all had at one time or another. The script and production are always evolving and it is such a joyful journey to follow! Horizons of Gold is now being performed in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Chicago, Illinois, and Indianapolis, Indiana.Live with Heart & Soul’s Editor in Chief Cornel Warren conducted an exclusive interview with Beth Kenniv, the creator of Horizons of Gold. This interview and a insight into the backstage workings of the show are available in the fall issue of Live with Heart & Soul!

Yosemite, Death Valley, and Lake TahoeAs you’ve been told about the west (or have seen for yourself) it truly is a world of its own. The mountains rest amidst awestruck tourist eyes, lengthy deserts and canyons happily take up their space, and the sky is undeniably bluer than most skies. My family and I visited Death Valley, Yosemite National Park, and Lake Tahoe this summer. What brought us to Death Valley was a 135 mile ultramarathon through the arid valley. Yes, you read it right. The race is called The Badwater 135 and my dad was assisting a runner. Meanwhile, my mom, brother, and I were scoping out a campsite in the pleasant air of the Mount Whitney portal. Once the race was over, my family and I hiked up the mountainside to Lone Pine lake at 10,000 feet. The mountain run-off is just as cold as you might imagine, but that didn’t keep us from a swim. The next day we set off to Yosemite, all hoping we would see a bear. While no bear ever came, we climbed up to waterfalls, gazed at El Capitan and Half Dome from Glacier Point, and gawked at giant Sequoia trees.Lake Tahoe was the last stop and I thought for most of the time there that I may never leave. My family and I took a speed boat out onto the icy blue waters and lounged at the mountain cabin. My father and brother became ambitious and climbed up a rock face to a waterfall spout!

While here is only one writer’s journey through these American wonders, Live with Heart & Soul magazine features another adventurer and her action packed visit to Yosemite as well as other national parks in the fall issue! Subscribe to Live with Heart & Soul magazine today to hear even more amazing stories and to be filled with encouragement and inspiration.

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Cornel Warren, Managing Editor of Live with Heart & Soul, shares her heart as she reaches Christian women with timeless, beautiful content to encourage and inspire their walks with God, themselves and those around them.

Taylor Tinnin, Contributing Writer at Live with Heart & Soul, celebrates the success of real-life Christian women who are walking out God's calling on their lives. She also writes inspirational articles that draw our eyes back to the Creator.

Patty Morwood, Contributing Writer at Live with Heart & Soul, celebrates the success of real-life Christian women who are walking out God's calling on their lives. She also writes inspirational articles that draw our eyes back to the Creator.